The second ITUC-Africa Women’s Biennial Conference, held in Lome, Togo, has called on trade unions across Africa to increase and sustain funding for women’s programmes within their organisations.
The conference said adequate funding for women-focused programmes would strengthen women’s participation and representation in trade union activities and decision-making processes.
The three-day conference, themed “Trade Union Feminism and Implementation of the ITUC-Africa Transformative Agenda for Gender Equality: Two Years of Action for Equality and Social Justice in Africa,” brought together more than 250 delegates from across Africa and international partner organisations.
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Declaring the conference closed, the President of ITUC-Africa, Comrade Martha Molema, said women’s contributions to the world of work could no longer be ignored, stressing the need for greater representation of women in decision-making spaces.
“Everywhere, a woman is necessary; we are necessary. Yet, where policies are made, a chair is often found empty and unoccupied. That chair, comrades, must be occupied.
“She has a right to be there. A woman has a right to be there.
“Behind every statistic is a woman waking before sunrise, caring and doing care work after sunset. Women never stop working.
“Women are found everywhere, comrades – in the fields, factories, markets, homes, unions and on the front lines. Everywhere, a woman is necessary; we are necessary,” she said.
Molema commended the resilience of women in trade unionism and criticised situations where women’s committees were either not funded or underfunded.
She said women should be involved in decisions concerning the allocation and distribution of resources.
“Every barrier must reflect women’s priorities. Women must be part and parcel of resource allocation and distribution. We must be there at those tables.
“My dear sisters, we must lead, contest, organise, negotiate and take charge.
“As you rise, push back, empower the market trader, the domestic worker, the farm worker and women in informal and under-represented sectors. Leave no sister behind and leave no stone unturned,” the ITUC-Africa President said.
Presenting a draft resolution at the end of the conference, the Rapporteur, Comrade Fiona Gandiwa Magaya, said participants resolved, among other things, to build alliances beyond the trade union movement.
She said trade unions should strengthen partnerships with lawyers, civil society organisations, faith-based organisations, women’s organisations and other stakeholders.
“These partnerships can provide knowledge, skills and resources to address prevailing concerns affecting women workers,” she said.
The conference also resolved to create spaces owned and led by women, where they could determine their priorities and guide their activities.
“Women should have spaces in which they determine their agendas and guide their activities.
“Such spaces should enable women to speak freely, share experiences, build solidarity, and develop a sense of belonging,” Magaya said.
In the informal economy, the conference resolved that trade union networks should serve as a bridge between trade unions and women working in the informal economy.
It said such alliances should be used to promote decent work, social protection, and support for women-owned enterprises.
Congratulating the participants on what he described as a well-attended and interactive conference. The General Secretary of ITUC-Africa, Comrade Joel Odigie, said the meeting had achieved the purpose for which it was convened.
Odigie urged participants to sustain efforts towards achieving the agreed targets ahead of the next conference scheduled for 2028.
